THE 


AMERICAJr CAUSE. 


PROCEEDII^GS, &c. 

OP THE 

IVATIVE AMEHICAM DEMOCRATS 

OF BROOKLYN. 



EMBRACING THE 

A B B R E S S 

OF THE 

]\ATIVE DEMOCRATIC COAVEATfOA, 
THESPFEIGHBS 

OF 

«Siifl^c BIIaE.TSAM and M. M. WE^TERrV, Esq., 

AT A 

PUBLIC MEETING ON THE I3tli OCTOBER; 

AND 

,K V/;Jl 

OTHER MATTERS. 

S 


BROOKLYN: 

|>UBLISI1£1) at the OFFICE OF THE NATIVE AMERICAN CITIZEN, 
NO. 52 FULTON STRKKT. 







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ADDRESS, &c. 


ADDRESS 

O/ the Convention of Native American Democrats 
of the City of Brooklyn, in the County of Kings, to 
the Native American Democrats of Kinks Countv • 
FELLOW-CITIZENS— ^ 

When in the course of events, a new Party, 
acting on a new combination of established princi¬ 
ples, is from necessity or choice called into beintr, it 
is due as well to the projectors as to the rest of their 
fellow-citizens, that the motives and objects of the 
one, and the manner in which it affects the other 
should be clearly and candidly defined. ’ 

We therefore declare to you, and to the world, 
that the objects which we, as a new party, seek to 
accomplish, are mainly these two : 

First Such an alteration in the Naturalization 
Laws as to require all foreigners who shall come to 
this country with a view to make it their permanent 
residence, to declare upon oath within one year 
after their arrival, their attachment to the Constitu¬ 
tion, and that it is their intention to become citizens 
of the United States j and that after such declara¬ 
tion shall be made, they shall evince the sincerity 
and soundness of their principles, and intention by 
a due observance of the Constitution and laws for a 
much longer period than five years, before they 
shall be admitted to citizenship ;—and we are of 
opinion that twenty-one years probation should be 
required. 

Secondly To oppose the elevation of Foreiorners 
to office. ° 

The necessity and propriety of accomplishing 
these objects are manifest from the following facts : 

Ist. That almost the whole body of emigrants to 
this country for some years past, and at present, are 
persons attached to the Roman Catholic Church. 

2d—That all the Bishops and Priests of that 
Church in this, as in all other countries, are ap¬ 
pointed by the Pope, and under his direction and 
control. 

3d—That Religion and Politics are inseparably 
united in the published creeds and standard works 
of the Roman Catholic Church,—the Pope claiming 
to be the Supreme Ruler of both Church and State, 

-—King of Kings, and Lord of Lords, and to have 
the rightful authority to forgive all sins, and to ab¬ 
solve the members of his Church from their oath of 
allegiance to any government which will not submit 
to his authority and control. 

4th. That there now exists in Europe a combina¬ 
tion of foreigners, ]qnder the name and title of the 
“St. Leopold Foundation,” who have sent their 
missionaries into our land, to inculcate the Roman 
Catholic Religion, doctrine, faith and practice, em¬ 
bracing the above principles, and requiring their 
members to pray for the “Unity of Christian 
Princes” (the Holy Alliance,) and the final extermi¬ 
nation of all heresies. 

5th-.-That these Missionaries, Priests, and 
Pishops, have the sole control of all the Catholic 


Colleges and Seminaries of learning in this coun¬ 
try, and are actively employed in inculcating their 
principles among the Protestants, and in the educa¬ 
tion ot the children of Protestants, while they leave 
the children of the lower classes of their own church 
almost neglected, and in gross ignorance; and in 
their correspondence with this foreign society, com¬ 
plain of our Government as being “ too free,” and 
attribute their want of success to the exercise of an 
American citizen’s birthright, saying that we will 
“ think for ourselves^ ' 

Who, fellow-citizens, can look upon these facts, 
and not be satisfied that it is time that the Natu¬ 
ralization law should be altered in the above par¬ 
ticulars ! 

^d why should not our native citizens fill the 
various offices which have been established for the 
good of our country 1 Are they not in talent, 
education, and virtue qualified to govern them¬ 
selves 1 We think they are, and if we would pre¬ 
serve the simplicity, purity, and permanency of our 
Republican Institutions, foreign interference should 
be repelled. 

We, in pursuance of the spirit of our Constitution, 
insist that an equal and free toleration of all religious 
opinions should be upheld and preserved, and that 
every attempted inroad of one on the other should bo 
promptly and permanently checked. 

We also insist that a permanent separation be¬ 
tween Church and State should be maintained, and 
that any encroachment on the exercise of our Civil 
and Political Institutions, by the tenets or practices 
of any religious denominatiori is calculated to dis¬ 
turb the well being of society, and ultimately to 
subject our fair country to foreign rule, if not foreign 
dominion. 

We also hold, as foreigners jp no other part of the 
globe are allowed to interfere in the concerns of the 
Government, to protect ourselves against foreign 
machinations, and to enable the country to remain 
pure in the national principles of its government, 
and as strong and united in its policy as other coun¬ 
tries, that we also should exclude foreigners from 
holding office or exercising any direct control in our 
political concerns. 

They have come over in ship-loads to our shores, 
and now, after a residence of five years, exercise 
more influence in our elections than the natives. 

They have become so arrogant in their demeanor, 
that they have caused riots and bloodshed in our 
peaceful cities. They have formed themselves into 
political associations of Roman Catholics, and other 
denominations, and by combined action have elevated 
foreigners to office, who are not as well qualified as 
native Americans, who were ready and willing to fill 
those offices. 

They have even formed and raised in the City of 
New-York a regiment of troops, officered and com¬ 
posed of foreigners and bearing a foreign name. 

For all these reasons, and others t«o numerous 









4 


<«> be 0t?vte(1 in tliia addroaa ; we, tlio Native Amer- 
i» an Convention, do solemnly declare, that we will 
by all necessary, legal, and Constitutional means 
endeavour to procure such an alteration in our Con¬ 
stitutions and Laws, as will prevent foreigners, who 
may hereafter come to this country from holding 
office amongst us, and deny them the right of voting 
until after a residence of twenty-one years, or such 
\)ther term as may be thought reasonable, believing, 
as we do, that the same time which is required of a 
native to exercise the like privilege is not too long 
and whilst we will continue to protect and preserve 
to them in common with ourselves all the domestic 
and civil advantages wliich we as natives enjoy 


turi£g, hi mr land, for the accompliehmcni of tkij 
purpose. Tins ho hoped to prove, not from any 
evidence exclusively in his possession, but from 
printed and official documents and papers, which 
were already before the public, but which the great 
mass of the people of this country, 1‘rom some in¬ 
explicable negligence, were for the most part la¬ 
mentably, and entirely ignorant; or if they w'ere 
aw'are of tlieir existence, had never bestowed upon 
them a careful and serious attention. The docu¬ 
ments and papers to which he alluded had been pub¬ 
lished in various newspapers in this country, w ithin 
the last two years, in a series of numbers, under the 
signature of “Bkctus,” and had since been col- 
will restrict them in their political powans.—Welected and published in a volume, a copy of w'hich 


we 


would also approve of such Laws as will banish from 
our soil any person wdio shall be convicted before a 
jury of being under the pay, employ, agency, or con¬ 
trol of any foreign prelate or power, with a view to 
alienate the attachment of our countrymen from our 
Republican form of Government. 

And with respect to all religious denominations of 
whatever name, we do declare it to be our solemn 
conviction, tliat if .any of them now hold and inculcate, 
and wdi per.'sist io bolding and inculcating, whether 
as a part of their religious creed, or otherwise, ])r!n 
ciples, which are calculated directly, or indirectly to 
subvert the Government, or any Political Republic In 
stitutions of our country, such religious denomination, 
and every member thereof ought without delay to be 
<leprjved of their elective franchise. 

And for the attainnuud; of these ends, denying any 
hostility to any individuals, and without exjjressijig 
any preference for any previous existing political party 
we pledge ourselves to our fellow citizens, .and to eacdi 
other, that W'o will engage in a continual and untiring 
exertion. 

1835, 

Francis B. Stryker, 


Brooklyn, October 23, 
John Dikeman, 

Geo. Hall, 

Stephen H. Bedell, 
iVlarrin Richardson, 
James C. Rhodes, 
Joseph Smith, 

T. Suydam Barkeloo, 
Benj, P, Jones, 

Alfred S. Combs, 
Benjamin Velsor, 
Nicholas B. Rhodes, 
Peter G, Bergen, 
Moses Van Buren, 
Henry A. C. Heins, 
George Latham, 
Wm. Rushmore, 
Morris Simonson, 
Moses A. Peirce, 

H. M. Western, 
Simon Richardson, 
Samuel Drew, 

Tunis John^n, 
Edward Rowe. 


David Farley, 

John Phillips, 

John J. Heins, 
James P. Spies, 

G. H. Combs. 

Jos. M, Simonson, 
Burdett Stryker, 
Augustus Back, 

H iram Richardson, 
Ebenezer A. Gear, 
Jas B. Barney, 
Lewis Nichols, 
Sami. H. Moser, 
Lemuel Green, 

A. M. Merwin, 
Conklin L. Gable, 
Alex. Carpenter, 
John Kidder, 

Jacob Brown, 

Peter Van Buren, 
Frederick Glover. 


SPEECH OF JUDGE DIKEMAN, 

XT X MKETlJtO OP NATIVE XMERICANS, ON THE 
J2 tH OCTOBER. 

Judge Dierman then arose and addressed the 
fneeting. He felt, deeply felt, the delicacy and re 
sponsibility of the situation which he occupied be 


he then held in his hand. Their author w'as Mr. 
Mouse, President of the National Institute, of the 
City^ of New-York, a gentleman of distinguished 
taste and learning, and who had) travelled much iu 
various parts of the wmrld, and particularly through¬ 
out the countries of central and southern Europe, 
While passing through these countries he had an 
opportunity to observe the state of feeling manifested 
by their sovereigns wdth regard to the cause of civil 
and religious liberty in general, and particularly in 
the United tales ; and from what he there saw, 
heard and read, he became convinced that there was 
a plot on foot to subvert the government and liber¬ 
ties of this country^! Entertaining these views, upon 
hi.s return home, he gave to the world the grounds 
and reasons for his fears, substantiated by official 
documents and authentic records which he had ga¬ 
thered in his travels ; and although the writings of 
Mr. Morse had been published for more than a 
year and a half, and had been widely circulated, yet 
that not a single fact stated by him had been de¬ 
nied—or attempted in any wise to be controverted 
or explained away, but tliat on the contrary, not¬ 
withstanding there was abundant opportunity to 
p'rove their falsity if such had been the case, a most 
profound silence had been observed on the part of 
those implicated by him. 

The facts set forth by Mr. Morse, and to which 
Mr. D. would call the attention of the meeting, were 
the declarations of the Holy Allianx’E, agciinsttlic 
cause of liberty every where, and particularly the 
organization of a society in central Europe, called 
the St. Leopoi.d Foundation, under the special pa¬ 
tronage of tlie Emperor of Austria, the King of 
Hungary, and the Pope of Rome; the avowed object 
of which, is the dissemination of their sentiments 
throughout these United Stales ! 

Now, what are the senliments of the Holy Alli¬ 
ance with regard to free institutions 1 Listen to the 
language of the Emperor of Russia on this subject 
—and I would, said Mr. D., that every ear in Ame¬ 
rica were present to hear it—listen to what he, the 
great head and prime mover of all its plans, says, 
when speaking of the progress of liberal sentiments 
in Poland. 

“ As long as I live,” says the’emperor, speaking 
of Poland, “ I will oppose a will of iron to the pro¬ 
gress of liberal opinions. The present generation 
is lost, but we must labour with zeal and earnestness 
to improve the spirit of that to come. It may re¬ 
quire an hundred years; I cim not unreasonable, I 


fore the meeting. He stood before them, pledged|givc you a whole age, but you must work without 
hy a previous promise, to prove the existence o/ a relaxation.” 

eontjMraey between tfie princes a.nd potentates of Eu- This is the malediction of the Holy Alliance 
jrrfpfi to subvert the liberties of this country; and the against Liberty. The despot’s will of iron is fixed in 
present actual employment of their agmits find cmis- deadly jiatred to its very name, and within R hundred 










5 


ycarify tf it Is jx)68ible for all tlic energies of tyranny! In the year 1828, tlio celebrated Frederick feedvio- 
to complete it, it is doomed to perish. Let us thcnjgel, one of the moat distinguished literary men of 


awake to our danger !—for if the tree of Liberty is 
to be rooted u]>, shall we the children of the soil, 
who have Ih'-cu shaded by its branches and nourished 
by its fruits, be found slumbering on our posts ! 

But do you ask, what are the evidences of our 
danger ] How know you that Foreign Princes have 
jctonspired against us 1 and whence this unwonted 
alarm 1 Listen a moment and we will see. 

What concurrence of circumstances, (asks Mr. 
Morse,) aside from confession of the plot, is sufficient 
to prove conspiracy I 

Is not the case proved if it can be shown— 

1st. That there exists an adequate motive to con¬ 
spire 1 

2d. That there exists ample means wherewith to 
conspire 1 

And 3d. That means capable of accomplishing the 
object of conspiracy are actually employed by those 
v'hose interest it is to conspire 1 

No one in the case before us can expect a confes¬ 
sion from the conspirators; let us have recourse 
then to the last proposed. 

1. Have Austria and the Holy Alliance ;an ade^ 
quote nwtivc for conspiring against the liberties of 
the United ^States 1 Can there be a stronger motive 
than that of self-preservation 1 So certain as this 
country exists in prosperity under its present de¬ 
mocratic form of government, just so certain will its 
example operate on the people of Europe, as it has 
for two centuries operated, and is now in an accele 
rated degree operating, to subvert the ancient op¬ 
pressive systems of government of the old world 
'I'he strongest motive, therefore, that can influence 
governments as well as individuals, that of self- 
preservation, impels Austria and the other despots 
of Europe to seek, by any means in their power, the 
subversion of this government. 

2. Have they the means to conspire 1 No one can 
doubt that the usual means of conspiracy, money, 
and intriguing agents, are perfectly at the command 
of those governments wffio can lavish their millions 
for the sole purpose of protecting their thrones, wdio 
keep in their pay for this vital object, standing ar¬ 
mies, and a police of tens of thousands of spies. 

3. Have they then employed, or are they actually 
employing means capable of accomplishing their ob¬ 
jects in this country 1 Austria, in a combination 
with other powers, called the St. Leopold founda¬ 
tion, has sent, and is still sending, both money and 
agents, to this country: the former comes in the 
shape of religious contributions to this St. Leopold 
foundation, the Society in Vienna, established with 
express reference to operations in the United States; 
the latter come from the same quarter, in the shape 
of hundreds of Jesuits and priests ; a class of men 
notorious for their intrigue and political arts, and 
who have a complete military origanization through 
the United States. The Catholic religion is the 
(cloak which covers the design. 

All the circumstances therefore necessary to prove 
conspiracy, concur in fixing this charge upon Aus¬ 
tria, and her associates in that Union of Christian 
Princes, combined in the St. Leopold Foundation. 

But let us see whether the circumstances under 
which this St. Leopold Foundation was brought into 
existence do not sufficiently testify to its dangerous 
character, and the object of its founders to aim a 
blow direct at the liberties of this country. 

Mr. Morse, thus gL-cs the history of its origin 


Europe, delivered lectures at Vienna on the Philo¬ 
sophy of History, (which have not been translated 
into English.) A great object of which is to show 
the mutual support which Popery and Monarchy de¬ 
rive from each other. He commends the two sys¬ 
tems in connexion as deserving of universal recep¬ 
tion. He attempts to prove that sciences, and arts, 
and all the pursuits of man as an intellectual being, 
are best promoted under this perfect system of 
church and state ; a Pope at the head of the former, 
an Emperor at the head of the latter. He contrasts 
with this the system of Protestantism; represents 
Protestantism as the enemy of good government, as 
the ally of Republicanism, as the parent of the dis¬ 
tresses of Europe, as the cause of all the disorders 
with which legitimate governments are afflicted. In 
the close of lecture 17th, vol. ii. p. 286, he thus 
speaks of this country : “ The true nursery of all 
these destructive principles, the revolutionary 
SCHOOL for France, and the rest of Europe, has been 
North AmeIiica. Thence the evil has spread over 
many other lands, either by natural contagion or by 
arbitrary communication.” 

This is the man, whose opinions on the relation 
of Popery and Monarchy, and of Protestantism and 
Republicanism, and of the influence of the United 
States have been followed by the action of the Aus¬ 
trians, in the formation of the St. Leopold founda¬ 
tion. He was part and parcel of the goveriimcnt, he 
was of one the Austrian cabinet, the confidential counsel 
lor of Prince Metternich! 

This is the origin of the St. Leopold Foundation, 
and of the plot against the liberties of our country. 
That this society is designed to have a political ra¬ 
ther than a religious bearing upon this country, is 
indeed very evident from all connected with it. It 
is absurd to suppose that Austria, the seat of bigo¬ 
try, superstition, ignorance, and tyranny should 
take so lively an interest in our affairs, as to expend 
its treasures in establishing colleges, nunneries, and 
schools for our Protestant children, from no other 
design than to advance the cause of education and 
enlighten our land. 

And while upon this subject he could not but la¬ 
ment the encouragement given by Protestants them¬ 
selves to Catholic Institutions in this country, for 
the education of Protestant children. Schools and 
seminaries, he said, had been established in every 
part of the United States, under the management of 
Foreign Priests, where Catholic principles were in¬ 
culcated to the children of this Protestant people. 
Our daughters were enticed into their nunneries, 
and our young men were persuaded to enter their 
colleges—and there were planted in their pliant and 
unsuspecting minds the seeds of a Foreign and 
Anti-Republican form of faith and government. All 
these institutions for the education of Protestant 
children, he said, were under the immediate control 
of the Pope of Rome, through agents alone respon¬ 
sible to him, the Catholic Bishops and Priests. In¬ 
deed, so far had this gone, that there was actually 
now a college in Kentucky, established by law, the 
whole management of which was vested perpetually 
in the Bishop of Kentucky, a foreign and irrespon¬ 
sible agent ofthe Papal See ! [See note A.] 

That these schools and nunneries were employed 
as political instruments was very evident—and in- 
dfe'(!d they could have no other object* 

Austria, the land of slaves and masters, where 







6 


even to utter a word in favour of civil or religious 
liberty is high treason ; for Ac stria to attempt to 
educate America is perfectly ridiculous. But we 
have confessions on this point which set the matter 
I)erfectly at rest. Charles X., the late tyrant King 
of France, was deeply embarked in this enterprize, 
to educate and convert America, and doubtless well 
knew his motives in giving assistance; and from 
the official report made to him by one of his minis¬ 
ters of state, it is expressly admitted, (see Report, 
page 89.) “ that independent of its purely spiritual 
design, it was of great political interest.” But 
let us descend into the particulars of the plan. It 
will be seen by the rules of the St. Leopold Foun¬ 
dation, (see note A.) that its most prominent object 
is “to promote the activity of Catholic Missions 
IN America !”—Now he, Mr. D., would be the last 
man in the world to attack the religious opinions of 
any particular sect, or to seek to abridge even in the 
smallest degree the rights of conscience secured by 
the Constitution. It might be said that this was an 
attack upon Catholics, and the cry of religious per- 
sceution might be raised against him—but such was 
not the truth. He sought not to interfere with the 
religious faith of any denomination, on the contrary 
he only aimed at repelling the interferenee of a sect^ 
as a sect—by its doctrines and acknowledged creed 
—in the civil affairs of the country ; and he cared 
not whether that sect was Catholic or Protestant, 
Episcopalian or Presbyterian, Baptist or Methodist 
— sueh interferenee, and the politieal hearing of the 
creed of any such sect, was a fit and proper subject 
for public discussion. It was the politieal, not the 
religimis character of Popery which he proposed to 
examine, and he should not be deterred from its in¬ 
vestigation by the “ senseless cry of religious con¬ 
troversy.'" —If he could prove that Popery has d. poli¬ 
tieal char act er —here, as well as elsewhere—and that 
such political character is directly opposed to, and 
necessarily subversive of our Republican form of 
government, then he hoped that his fellow citizens 
would acquit him of an interference in the religious 
concerns of any sect. 

He would show the character of Popery from its 
constitution; and it was to be remembered that the Ca¬ 
tholic Cliurch was intallible—that its doctrines ad¬ 
mitted ot no alteration or rejection,—and that from its 
first principle of infallibility, what was Catholicism in 
one country, must necessarily be so in another. 

Mr. Morse on this point says, 

The Pope, the Supreme Head of the Catholic 
church, claims to be the “ Vicegerent of Godf “ su¬ 
preme over all mortals “ over all Emperors, Kings, 
Princes, Potentates, and People“ King of kings 
and Lord of lords.” Ho styles himself, “ the divine¬ 
ly appointed dispenser of Spiritual and temporal 
punishments;” “armed with power to depose Em¬ 
perors and Kings, and absolve subjects from their oath 
of allegiance;” “ from him lies no appeal;” “ he is re¬ 
sponsible to no one on earth;” “ he is judged of no 
one but God.” But not to go back to former ages, to 
prove the fact of the Pope’s claiming divine right, let 
the present Pontiff Gregory XVI. testify. He 
claims, and attempts the exercise of this pleniitude of 
ower and asserts his divine right. The document 

quote is fresh from the Vatican, scarce four months 
old, a document in which the Pojie interferes directly 
in the political affairs of Portugal against Don Pedro. 

“ How can there be unity in the body,” says the Pope, 

“ when the members are not united to the head, and 
do not obey it I And how can this union and obedi¬ 
ence be maintained in a country where they drive 


from their so/cs the bishops, logitimatoJy instkutod by 
Him to whom it ap|)ertain.s to assign pastors to all the 
vacant churches, because the divine right grants to 
Him alone the primacy of jur isdiction and the plcn- 
titude of power." 

Popery embodies in itself the closest union or 
Church and State. Observe it at the fountain head. 
In the Roman States, the civil and ecclesiastical offices 
are blended together in the same individual. The 
Pope is the King A cardinal is Secretary of 
State. The Consistory of Cardinals is the Cabinet 
Council, the AUnistry, and they are Viceroys in the 
provinces. The Archbishops are Ambassadors to fo¬ 
reign courts. The Bishops are Judges and Magis¬ 
trates, and the road to preferment to most if not all 
the great offices of state is through the priesthood. 
In Rome and the patrimony of St. Peter the temporal 
and spiritual powers are so closely united in the same 
individual, that no attack can be made on any tempp- 
ral misrule without drawing down upon the assailant 
the vengeance of the spiritual power exercised by the 
same individual. Is the Judge corrupt or oppressive 
and do the people rise against him—the Judge retires 
into the Bishop, and in his sacred retreat cries 
“ Touch not the Lord’s anointed.” 

The Catholic catechism now taught by Catholic 
priests to the Poles in all the schools of Poland, and 
published by special order at Wilna, 1832, is very 
conclusive of the character of Catholic doctrine. The 
following questions and answers are propounded. 

‘‘Guest. 1. How is the authority of the Emperor 
to be considered in reference te the spirit of Christi¬ 
anity'? Ans. As proceeding immediately from God.” 

“ Guest. 2. How is this substantiated by the na¬ 
ture of things Ans. It is by the will of God that 
men live in a society; hence the various relations 
which constitute society, which for its more complete 
security is divided into parts called nations; the go - 
vernment of which is intrusted to a Prince, King, or 
Emperor, or in other words, to a supreme ruler ; we 
see, then, that as man exists in conformity to the will 
of God, society emanates from the same divine will, 
and more especially the supreme power and authority 
of our lord and master, the Czar. 

“Guest. 3. What duties does religion teach us, 
the humble subjects of his Majesty the Emperor of 
Russia, to practice towards him'? Ans. Worship, 
obedience, fidelity, the payment of taxes, service, love 
and prayer, the whole being comprised in the words 
worship and fidelity. 

“ Guest. 4. Wherein does his worship consist, 
and how should it be manifested'? Ans. By the 
most unqualified reverence in words, gestures, do- 
meanor, thoughts and actions. 

“Guest. 5. W^hat kind of obedience do we owe 
him 7 Ans. An entire, passive, and unbounilcd obe¬ 
dience in every point of view. 

“ Guest. 6. In what consists the fidelity we owm 
to the Emperor'? Ans. In executing his commands 
most rigorously, without examination, in perfonninof 
the duties he requires from us, and in doing every 
thing willingly without murmuring. 

“ Guest. 8. Is the service of his Majesty the Em¬ 
peror obligatory on us J Ans. Absolutely so ; wq 
should, if required, sacrifice ourselves in compliance 
with his will, both in a civil and military capacity, 
and in whatever manner he deems expedient. 

“ Guest. 9. What benevolent sentiments and love 
are due to the emperor '? Ans. We should manifest 
our good will and affection, according to our station 
in endeavouring to promote the prosperity of our na¬ 
tive land, Russia, (not Poland) as well as that of the 
Emperor, our father, and his august fiimily. * * * 

“ Guest. 13. Docs religion forbid us to rebel, and 




ovfitlirow tlio ^ovci'iinient o( tlie Einporor'? A ns.I 
We arc iiitenlictecl from so doin^, at all times, and 
under any circumstances. 

“ truest. 11. Independently of the worship we owe 
to the Etnperor, are we called u})OU to rcs[)ect the 
public authorittes emanating iromhim'? Ans. Yes; 
because they emanate from him, represent him, and 
act as his substitute, so that the Emperor is every 
where. 

“Q,uest. 15. What motives have we to fulfil the 
duties above enumeratcxl 'I Ans. the motives are 
two-fold—some natural, others revealed. 

Q. IG. Wliat are the natural motives 1 Ans. Be¬ 
sides the motives adduced, there are the following. 
The Emperor, being the head of the nation, the fa¬ 
ther of all his subjects who constitute one and the 
same country, is thereby alone worthy of reverence, 
gratitude, and obedience; for both public welfare 
and individual security depend on submissivencss to 
liis commands. 

Q. 17. What are the supernatural rcve'aled mo¬ 
tives for this worship 1 Ans. The supernatural re¬ 
vealed motives arc, that the Emperor is the vice¬ 
gerent and minister of God to execute the divine 
commands; and, consequently, disobedience to the 
Emperor is identified with disobedience to God him¬ 
self; that God will reward us in the world to come 
for the worship and obedience we render the Em¬ 
peror, and punish us severely to all eternity, should 
we disobey and neglect to worship him. Moreover, 
God commands us to love and obey, from the in¬ 
most recesses of theheart, every authority, and par¬ 
ticularly the Emperor, not from worldly considera¬ 
tions, but from apprehension of the final judg¬ 
ment. ***** 

“Q. 19. What examples confirm this doctrine 1 
Ans. The example of Jesus Christ himself, who 
lived and died in allegiance to the Emperor of 
Rome, and respectfully submitted to the judgment 
which condemned him to death. We have, more¬ 
over, the example of the apostles, who both loved 
and respected them ; they suffered meekly in dun¬ 
geons conformably to the will of Emperors, and did 
not revolt like malefactors and traitors. We must, 
therefore, in imitation of these examples, suffer and 
be silent.” 

This is the doctrine taught to the Catholics of 
Poland, and let every one read it, and tremble!— 
The Emperai' is made a God, and the Catholic reli¬ 
gion enjoins upon the subject, his worship, unquali¬ 
fied reverence, and passive, unbounded obedience; and 
that, not alone under temporal penalties, but under 
pain of the “ final judgment.” It might, however, 
bo said, that the Catholic religion was a different 
thing in this country. But such was not the case. 
The Union of Church and State, the Divine Right of 
Kings, and the abject dependence of the subject, are 
not indeed enforced in this country, but that arises 
from the want of power, not from any alteration or 
modification of their creed. The Catholic church is 
held to be universal, infallible, unchangeable—the 
Pope is its grand head, and all Bishops and Priests 
in every land hold their appointment directly from 
him. One Will governs the whole, and only one 
mind can think, and one voice express the senti¬ 
ments of the Catholic world, and that mind, will, 
and voice, is concentrated in the Sovereign Pontiff 
at Rome. If such is not the case, let the Catholic 
Bishops and. Clergy of America come out with a 
public and unqualified disclaimer of the doctrines of 
European Catholicism. Will they do this 1 It has 


I been, urged upon them again and again; but they 
have not, will not, can not, dare not do it! They 
know it to be the truth ! their own Bishops and 
Priests in writing to the Austrian Society admit that 

“ so LONG AS THE REPUBLICAN GOVERNMENT SHALL 

subsist” they cannot expect to succeed in their ef¬ 
forts to convert our quarter of the world:—(see let¬ 
ter of Bisho{) Flaget of Kentucky, p. 83.) One, the 
Bishop of Baltimore, complains, that “in conse¬ 
quence of being spoiled by bad instruction, they (us 
Americans) will judge every thing for themselves.” 
(See letter, p. 82.) Another, the fmissionary in Mi¬ 
chigan, mourns over the faults of our “ too free 
Government. (See letter, p. 84.) The “ Catholic 
Telegraph,” one of the most influential papers of 
that sect, and under the direct controul of the 
Bishop of Cincinnati, openly declares, that “ our 
system of government, though very fine in theory, 
very fit for imitation on the part of those who seek 
the power of the mob, in contra-distinction to jus¬ 
tice and the public interest, is not of a nature to in¬ 
vite the reflecting part of the world.'*'* 

All being precisely in accordance with the en¬ 
cyclical letter of the present Pope, Gregory XVI. 
dated September 1832, who thus places his male¬ 
diction on the progress of liberal sentiments : 

“From this polluted fountain of‘ indifference’ 
flows that absurd and erroneous doctrine, or rather 
raving in favor and defence of ‘ liberty of con¬ 
science,’ for which most pestilential error the course 
is opened to that entire and wild liberty of opinion 
which is every where attempting the overthrow ©f 
religious and civil institutions, and which the un¬ 
blushing impudence of some has held forth as an ad¬ 
vantage to religion.—Hence that pest of all others 
most to be dreaded in a state, unbridled liberty of 
opinion, licentiousness of speech, and a lust of nov¬ 
elty, which, according to the experience of all ages, 
portend the downfall of the most powerful and 
flourishing empires. 

“ Hither tends that worst and never sufficiently to 
be execrated and detested liberty of the Press, for 
the diffusion of all manner of writing,which some so 
loudly contend for, and so actively promote.” 

Despotism indeed seems to be inherent in Popery. 

> Witness their titles of distinction :—The Pope is 
“ Vicegerent of God,** —a Cardinal, “Aw Eminence,** 
—and Bishops are “ My Lords ;** and even in this 
country these are retained, and we have “ wiy Lord 
Bishop of New York,** his Grace of Cincinnati,** 
&c. &c. 

And from this stream—the uiimingled stream of 
Despotism, ruled and guided by a Foreign power, 
our offspring were called upont o drink!—To drink 
what 1 The pure principles of Foreign Despotism ! 

But it might be said, “ after all—admitting all you 
said to be true, there is no danger. The Catholic 
religion has never yet been made a political instru¬ 
ment in this country, and the probability is, that it 
never will. When Catholics begin to act upon 
Anti-Republican principles,—when the Bishops and 
Priests begin to interfere in our Elections, and ex¬ 
tend an improper influence over voters, it will be 
time enough to raise the alarm,” But, asked Mr. D., 
is this the the language of reason 1 Shall we wait 
until our homes are consumed before we get our 
possessions insured 1—Shall we allow the wolf to 
enter into the sheep-fold, before wo close the door 1 
After being convinced of the existence of a Foregin 
Conspiracy against us, shall we wait until we feel 
'our liberties going, before we take measures to 



8 


8cr.nro tlvom 1 Ho appealed to the common sense of 
every man, whether such was a reasonable cause ! 
But it was not truc^ that Popery had not interfered 
in our elections. It had interfered directly in several 
instances, as was shown by Mr. Morse. He says— 

“ It is not true that Popery meddles not with the 
politics of the country. The cloven foot has already 
shown itself. Popery is organized at the elections ! 
For example : in Michigan, the bishop Richard, a Je¬ 
suit, (since deceased) was several times chosen dele¬ 
gate to Congress from the Territory, the majority of 
the people being Catholics. As Protestants became 
more numerous, the contest between the bishop and 
his Protestant rival was more and more close, until at 
length, by the increase of Protestant emigration, the 
latter triumphed. The bishop, in order to detect any 
delinquency in his flock at the polls, had his tickets 
jyrinted on coloured paper; whether any were so 
mutinous as not to vote according to orders, or what 
penance was inflicted for disobedience, I did not 
learn. The fact of such a truly Jesuitical mode of 
espionage I have from a gentleman resident at that 
time in Detroit. Is not a fact like this of some im¬ 
portance Does it not show that Popery, with all 
its speciousness, is the same here as elsewhere 1 It 
manifests, when it has the opportunity, its genuine 
disposition to use spiritual power for the promotion 
of its temporal ambition. It uses its ecclesiastical 
weapons to control an election.” 

In Charleston, S. C., the Roman Catholic Bishop 
England is said to have boasted of the number of 
votes that ho could control at an election. I have 
been informed on authority which cannot be doubted, 
that in Nevv-York, a priest, in a late election for 
city Oflicers, stopped his congregation after mass 
on .Sunday, and urged the electors not to vote for a 
particular candidate, on the ground of his being an 
anti-CathoIic; the result was the election of the 
Catholic candidate. X 

Thus appeared, from evidences at least satis¬ 
factory to his mind, the astounding facts of the ex¬ 
istence of a Foreign Conspiracy to subvert the liberties 
of our country^—the actual employment of Foreign 
agents and emissaries in the shape of Priests ami 
othoi s, to effect this jmrjmsc,—and not only this, but 
the actual comnicnccment of their operations through 
Schools, Mo7iastcries, Numerics and .\t the polls. 

The question might, however, be viewed in a 
dill’erent light—one entirely without reference to 
religious creeds ; and he thought it could be shown 
conclusively, that even in this case there were suf¬ 
ficient reasons for opposing the elevation of for¬ 
eigners to oflicc, and seeking an alteration in the 
IVaturalization I^aws. 

He would briefly notice .some of these reasons; 
and 1st, Foreigners were in general unfit to vote 
or hold office in this country, from two distinct 
cjiuscs—the extreme ignorance of the great mass 
of emigrants, and the deep-grounded prejudices of 
the belter informed. Some, bred up under a 
De.spotic government, deprived of the advantages 
of education and accustomed to passive obedience 
to a master’s will, had the misfortune rather than 
the fault of being unfit to judge or act as Freemen. 
Others nurtured beneath the iron power of a kingly 
government, and used to the dazzling display and 
exclusive privileges of an aristocracy, had become 
wedded to the system; and many a Foreigner 
might be found, who while gaining his substance 
here, and enjoying all the blessings of Liberty, 
would still tell us, that ouk government is too 


FREB, and that a monarchy would htt better. Both 
these classes, it was very evident was unfit to rule 
among us. But even if they were otherwise 
qualified, five years was acknowledgedly too short a 
period from them to acquaint themselves with tho 
form and nature of our Government, and tho char¬ 
acter and qualifications of candidates for office. 

[See Note B.] 

It might however be said that by depriving Fo¬ 
reigners of office, and the privileges of the elective 
Franchise, we would take away all inducements for 
emigration to this country. But such was not the 
case. We would still extend an asylum to the 
oppressed—food and raiment—a home and all the 
comforts and security of freedom, to the emigrant, 
and hold in reserve for his posterity, the political 
rights and privileges of Citizens. Thc.se would be 
sufficient inducements for the worthy and the 
honest to come among us, and these were all we 
stood in need of. 

With regard to the effect of the measures which 
he advocated, upon such Foreigners as had beconm 
naturalized Citizens, he would speak a word. It 
was not proposed to deprive them of any of their 
privileges, except so far as the electors might see fit 
to withhold from them their support for office. 
Indeed no law was desired, or could be passed, to 
affect them in any manner : and those who had not 
taken advantage of our Laws to become citizens, 
could not certainly be injured by the repeal of laws 
conferring favors and privileges which the donors 
judged prudent no longer to extend. Such a view 
of the subject he wa.s happy to say had been taken 
by many foreigners in this country, who had 
voluntarily relinquished all active participation in the 
government, judging it better to secure to their 
children the full privileges of freemen, than to hazard 
them by their own exercise. And in truth, natura¬ 
lized citizens who held themselves identified with 
the welfare of this country, and were Amekic.^ns in 
fact, as well as by naturalization, were as much in¬ 
terested in this measure as natives ; and to declare 
opposition to it, was to rank themselves still with 
Foreigners and x\liens ! 

But the question would be put to them. What is to 
be the effect of your meetings ] Where do you 
stand, and where are you going 1 Both political 
j)arties looked to them for support, and both would 
i»c disappointed. Some called them Whigs, and 
others called them Tories. Both were wrong. 
They were neither Whig nor Tory—neither Van 
Buren nor Webster men, in their associated ca[)acity; 
but they stood alone—-to stand or fall—as Native 
Americans. It was said they were too weak to 
elect a candidate of their own. Be it so. They, 
however, at least could choose between the rival 
candidates, and thus hold the balance of power, 
and give the casting vote, instead of Foixigners. 
But if neither party nominated a candidate favoura¬ 
ble to American sentiments, that it would be seen 
whether they had not both the power and disposi¬ 
tion to nominate and elect one for themselves ! And 
whatever should be done, it might be relied upon, 
that it would be in accordance with their motto—• 

“ The Country—the whole Country— and no¬ 
thing •but the Country 1” 

[Note A.] 

One College at the West under Austrian influence. 

The following facts illustrate the dangerous, suc¬ 
cessful intriguing spirit of the Jesuits, and the cul¬ 
pable negligence of one of our state legislatures (that 






9 


of Kentucky) which has thus suffered itself to be the 
dupe of popish artifice. !St. Joseph’s College, at 
Bardstown, Kentucky, was incorporated by the State 
Legislature in 1824. The Bishop of Bardstown is 
Moderator, and live Priests are Trustees. And there 
is this provision in the charter; “ The said trustees 

shall hold their station in said college one year only, at 
which time the said moderator shall have the power 
of electing others, or the same, if he should think 
proper, and increase the number to tw’elve, and this 
power may be excercised by him every year hereafter 
or his successor or successors to the Bishoprick ; and 
in case of the removal, the resignation or death of ei 
ther of the said trustees, his place may be supplied by 
an appointment that may be made by the said Bishop, 
or his successor or successors, who may also become 
moderators in the institution, and act* ^d do as the 
said B. J. Flaget is empowered by tlhs act to do.’ ’ 

The Bishop of Bardstown, in a lejjerjo a friend in 
Europe, dated February, 1825, says; “ Our Legisla 

ture has just incorporated the college. The Bishops 
of Bardstown are continued perpetually its moderators 
or rectors. I might 'have dictated conditions, which 
I could not have made more advantageous or honor¬ 
able ; and what is still more flattering is, that these 
privileges were granted almost without any discussion, 
and with unanimity in both houses.” 

Now the Pope, it is well' known, appoints all Bi¬ 
shops. Here then is one college in the country al¬ 
ready placed in perpetuo under the exclusive control 
of the Pope, and consequently for an indefinite period 
under that of Austria! 

[Note B,] 

Immigration and our Naturalization Law. 

The subject of Immigration is one of those which 
demands the immediate attention of the nation, it is a 
question which concerns all parties : and if the writer 
is not mistaken in his reading of the signs of the 
times, the country is waking to a sense of the alarm¬ 
ing evil produced by our Naturalization Laws. Let 
us war among ourselves in party warfare, with every 
lawful weapon that we can convert to our purpose. 
It is our birthright to havip our own opinion, and 
earnestly to contend for it; but let us court no foreign 
friends. Every American should feel his national 
blood mount at the very thought of foreign interfe¬ 
rence. While we welcome the intelligent and perse¬ 
cuted of all nations, and give them an asylum and a 
share in our priveleges, let us beware lest we admit to 
dangerous fellowship, those who cannot and will not 
use our hospitality aright. That such may come, aud 
do come, there is no reason to doubt. Consider the 
following testimony of an emigrant, given befmre a 
justice in Albany. He says that “ in June last the 
parish officers paid the passages of himself, and about 
forty others of the same parish, from Chatham to the 
city of Boston, in America, in the ship Royalist, capt. 
Parker, and that they landed in Boston, in the month 
of July last—that the parish officers gave him thirty 
shillings sterling in addition to paying his passage— 
that he is now entirely destitute of the means of liv¬ 
ing, and is unable to labour, and prays for relief. 

Now here are forty paupers cast upon our shores 
from one parish in England, and in five years they 
become citizens entitled to vote ! ! Is there an Amer¬ 
ican of any party, who can believe that there is no 
danger in admitting to equal privileges with himselt 
such a class of foreigners 1 A remedy to this crying 
evil admits of not a moment’s delay. At this moment 
the ocean swarms with ships crowded with this 
wretched population, bearing them from misery abroad 
to misery here. 

The expense incurred in this city (New-York) for 
the support of foreign paupers, it is wmll known, is 

V ' 2 


enormous. In Phfladelpliia, more than three-fourths 
of the inmates of their Alms house are foreigners. 
Whole families have been known to come from on 
board shi}), and go directly to the Alms house. In the 
Boston Dispensary there were the last year [1834]. 
from two districts only, 477 patients; of these 441 
were foreigners ! ! leaving but 30 of our own popula¬ 
tion to be provided for. In the Boston Alms house, 
the following returns show the increase of foreign 
[laupers in five years: 

The year ending Sept. 30, 1829, Americans 395, 

“ “ “ “ Foreigners 284 

The year ending Sept. 30, 1834, Americans 340 
“ “ “ “ Foreigners 613 

Thus we see that native pauperism has decreased 
in five years, and foreign pauperism more than 
doubled. 

In Cambridge, Mass, more iha.n four-fifths of the- 
paupers are foreigners. 

The first and immediate step that should be taken 
is to press upon Congress, and upon the nation, in¬ 
stant attention to the naturalization laws. We 
must first stop this leak in the ship, through which 
the muddy waters from without threaten to sink us. 
If we mean to keep our country, this life boat of the 
world, from foundering wdth all the crew, we must 
take on board no more from the European wreck, 
until we have safely landed and sheltered its present 
freight. But would you have us forfeit the charac¬ 
ter of the country as the asylum of the world 1 No ; 
but it is a mistaken philanthropy indeed that would 
attempt to save one at the expense of the lives of 
thousands ; that would receive into our families 
those dying with the plague. Our naturalization 
laws were never intended to convert this land into 
the Alms house of Europe, to cover the alarming 
importation of every thing in the shape of man that 
European tyranny thinks^. send adrift from its 
shores, nor so to operate as^tip^rrender back all the 
blessings of that freedom for which our fathers paid 
so dear a price into the keeping of our enemies. 


SPEECH OF H. M. W^ESTERN, Esq. 

After Mr. Dikeman had concluded his re¬ 
marks, Mr. Western was called for from all 
parts of the Meeting ; upon Mr. Western 
rising, he was greeted with continued applause 
when he remarked— 

That he had heard his name announced 
fromthe chair as one of the Delegates appointed 
to the Native American Convention, appointed 
by this Meeting. I speak, says Mr. W., from 
the most inward chambers of my heart, when I 
say, that I feel honored by that appointment; 
and I now openly and publicly accept of its re¬ 
sponsibilities.—For myself, I feel prepared to 
say, that whether this party continues to con¬ 
sist of the hundreds who now, with glowdng 
countenances, surround me—or of a deserted 
few—I shall alike, through good and through 
evil, abide to the end by the principles it in¬ 
volves, and stand or fall by their destiny. And 
although, fellow Americans, it is a high source of’ 
gratification to be so unanimously called upon 
to address a Native Meeting, so large and so- 
united, yet that from the melancholy and as¬ 
tounding facts which had been brought home to 
his recollection, by his friend who had just sat 




10 


down, he almost felt incompetent to give vent to 
his language. 

I feel my mind filled with regrets and sorrows 

at the picture presented to us to night-a state 

of tilings foreboding so much ill to the peace and 
unity of our beloved country, that my capacities 
are staggered by the contemplation. 

Already does the future reveal to me, the 
red arm of religious fiinaticism, lighting the 
bed of faggots of us Heretics—and already^ do 
I hear the cruel chains of Religious persecution, 
clanking on American ears. Fellow Ameri¬ 
cans ! we have a most sacred, and at 
the same time, a most delicate duty to per¬ 
form : on the one hand we are called upon 
to protect our birthrights as Americans, to 
oppose and defeat the inroads of foreign bigots, 
to entrench ourselves and our children against the 
horrors of Roman Catholic mercy—the marks of 
whose tread stain the pages of history with blood. 
—On the other hand, to array ourselves tempora¬ 
rily against a portion of those with whom we daily 
associate—to assail men because of their religious 
tenets, and to draw a line in this community, be¬ 
tween natives and foreigners. The choice is an 
odious one : but I know that the price of almost 
every good is a certain measure of self denial and 
punishment. On this spot, fellow Americans, some 
half a century ago, your fathers assembled to as¬ 
sert and achieve the Independence we now enjoy 
—here, on tliis same spot, we too meet to-night, 
to perpetuate and protect that same freedom.— 
Let it not be said, we attack or assail either for¬ 
eigners or Catholics—we do neither—we aim but 
to defend ourselves—we tolerate all religions equal¬ 
ly—we open our arms to the exiles of every foreign 
land—we resist their encroachments on our civil 
liberties—we do not desire to abridge those which 
belong of right to any other set of men—we set 
up no standard of religion—nor do we wish to 
discuss its ,tenets : but we do demand as our right 
that no foreign schemes shall be made—no insidi¬ 
ous internal plots matured—no blood-thirsty war 
against us as heretics be e:^ecuted which may de¬ 
stroy our institutions—^^jeopardize our liberties— 
and ruin our country. Fellow Americans! familiar 
illustrations are often more convincing to the mind 
than abstract truths ; suppose a friend, nay a fo¬ 
reigner, were invited to the social board of one of 
you—and which of you has not the heart, and the 
hospitality, and the board to afford such an invita¬ 
tion,—he enters your doors, partakes of your ab¬ 
undance, mixes with your children, fattens on your 
hospitality—when presently gorged with your li¬ 
berality, he impudently takes command of your 
house, insists on an equal voice in governing not 
only your servants but yourself—takes his seat at 
the head of your table, and there claims not only 
to be the guest, but the master; not only the ser¬ 
vants’ master, but the master’s master ; nor does 
he stop there—your mind as well as your body 
must be subdued; he brings ’with him his foreign 
religion, his foreign prejudices and customs, these 
too must be submitted to ; your American feelings, 
your dearest privilege of a free exercise of reli¬ 
gious worship, your very mode of governing your 


republican household, must give place to his dog¬ 
mas—or you must lay down your life to him (in 
the language of the instructors of their missiona¬ 
ries,) as ail heretics ought—are you prepared to 
submit to this—are you prepared to delay until fu¬ 
ture ship loads and a continuance of existing natu¬ 
ralization laws, render you a minority, and too few 
to cope with them ? 1 answer, no—up, therefore, 
Americans, and be doing! 

Is there no danger, let us inquire. What coun¬ 
try received into its bosom and warmed in its em¬ 
braces, Ireland’s persecuted and exiled sons—Am¬ 
erica. Yet the champion of Ireland’s emancipa¬ 
tion—on the word of a renegado preacher from 
amongst us—stood up before the world, and ca¬ 
lumniated and denounced this home of the exile— 
this land of the tree. Oh, ungrateful, treacherous, 
false, O’Connell, how, after this, can Americans 
trust your countrymen here ? You! you ! their 
champion and their leader, stood up Ijefore the 
world, and denounced us all as opposed to 
freedom and liberty. The eagle gaze of America 
is bent upon you—and we feel that actions (did 
the occasion offer) would not lag far behind the 
promulgation of such sentiments. 

But even from this Charletan 0‘Connell may 
something be learned applicable to our present ob¬ 
jects. Mark his career, fellow Americans, and 
profit by his history. His has not been a career 
of violence to the laws, or to society; he was too 
Avary: he had seen that the lamented, the brave, 
the talented Emmet, had perished by a single act 
of imprudence—he has read in letters of death 
the fate of other Irish martyrs—he, he, attempted 
the achievement of Irish emancipation, by legal, by 
constitutional, by legislative, by lawful measures. 
Such, too, must be our course—violence, temper, 
abuse, ill feelings, will not serve us— we must do 
our work more thoroughly, we must begin at the 
root of the evil—we must be heard, and be felt 
too, in our primary assemblies — in our legislative 
halls —in onr open, manly, liberal, .American Sen- 
timents. We attack no foreigner, therefore—tve 
assail iio religion—but we avow that we will not 
have either our government of ourselves or our 
Country, or our Religion,be tvhat it may, innovated 
by^sany, much less by foreigners—that all the 
rights of Americans we will preserve to ourselves 
—and we will prevent the Catholic, or any other 
religion, from obtaining an ascendency among us 
dangerous either to our safety or our liberty. 

d‘Connell commenced, like us, with a feAV him 
dred sincere adherents—their cause was just, and 
his measures were wise and lawful—mark the re 
suit. Irish Emancipation, ivhich rose a spec on 
the horizon, has become a polar star of British po¬ 
licy—that which, in its birth,was regarded as mean 
and contemptible, is now the theme of British 
Statesmen, and an object of respect and admira¬ 
tion. 

Retire not, therefore, to your wives and chil¬ 
dren to-night with a single ill feeling to any indivi¬ 
dual foreigner—nor. a heart burning towards an 
opponent, be he either Catholic or foreigner—no¬ 
thing can be gained by such feeling, and it would 
be unjust and ungenerous. They are but the 



11 


tools of great knaves at the distance—they are 
iKit the tnten^d instruments of harm to us—and 
if we take timely precaution to guard against 
that harm, we may yet presetwe our safety and 
their INNOCENCE. 

Let our common relations of life then flow 
smoothly on, wdth them, and let us scorn to be in 
hospitable. 

b ellow Americans, the lateness of the hour 
admonishes me that I trespass on your pa¬ 
tience, let me close therefore with the hope 
that you who are here now firmly pledge 
yourselves to remain firmly united to each 
other in the patriotism and justice of our 
cause, pledging, like your ancestors, “your 
lives, your fortunes, and your sacred honors,” 
for the protection of the Liberties of your 
Country. 




Working of the Plot !—When the first 
alann was sounded, with regard to ths St. Leo¬ 
pold Foundation, and the Conspiracy of Austria 
and the Pope, against the liberties of America, 
the reply of time-serving, and ofiice-seeking-men, 
and of others who either could not, or pretended 
not, to see any danger, was. Show us the 
danger of the Plot 1 If there is a Conspiracy, 
and if it has been in operation for several years 
as you state, shew us its effects. Do such men 
desire an answer to their question ?—if they do. 


years. 

Germans, principally fron Austria, that are pour¬ 
ing into the Valley, all Catholics. In St. Louis 
alone, the large church is filled every Sunday, at 
10 o’clock, with a German audience, who hear 
mass, and have afterward a sermon in German 
All these emigrants came the present year. They 
are nothing to the numbers that have gone into 
the country. Every steamboat brings more or 
less. ^Account* that may be relied on, say, that 


large bodies are coming next year from Austria, 
the Catholic cantons of Switzerland, and the dif¬ 
ferent States of Germany. Congress, you know, 
has granted a township of land to a body of Poles. 
Their agents are here, finding a place to locate 
their grants. That township will be a rallying 
point for that people, and the agents state, that 
many thousands of their countrymen now scat¬ 
tered over Europe, and thousands now in Poland 
intend coming to this land of liberty during the 
next five years. They are all staunch Catholics. 
Ireland has just begun, in earnest, to come out of 
her hive. Many thousands of her Catholic chil¬ 
dren may be expected now, every year. Catho¬ 
lic countries will now send us thousands where 
they formerly sent one. The reason is plain. 
Catholic emigrants tell me that multitudes are 
coming now, that would rather have starved than 
come many years ago. We have now priests and 
Catholic churches, so that our children “ will not 
become heathen,” or in other words, Protestant. 
This is the reason given by them, and is undoubt¬ 
edly the true one. I have no doubt but the emi¬ 
gration from Ireland alone for the next five years 
will yearly average 50,000 to the Valley. Every 
one acquainted with the subject rates it much 
higher than 100,000. But Germany, Switzerland, 
and Poland, are emigrating by wholesale. In a 
very short time, all these can vote, and the Ca¬ 
tholic influence is now felt here powerfully, and 
will shortly be decisive. Emigration alone, in 10 
years, will give the Catholics a complete ascen- 


they can have it, if they will but open their eyes 

and look around them, and see the triumphs of tlency.^ But every other^ thing works in their fa 
foreigners in this city, in New York, and through- 
out the whole of the country. But the fact is that 
they close their eyes and ears against all evi 
dence, and then ask you to show the effects! 

As well might the man who puts out his eyes com¬ 
plain that the sun does not shine, because his own 
wilfulness prevents his seeing it 1 But there are 
workings in the Plot, in the west, which we 
cannot see, but of which we may read, if we have 
the disposition; and indeed all we ask of any 
man is to read and reflect ; and if he has the feel¬ 
ings of an American, —nay, if he has one spark 
of the spirit of ’76 in his composition, or one 
drop of Yankee blood in his veins, —that man 
must be with us! 

The following extract of a letter from the 
West, shows how the Austrians are carrying 
every thing before them in the great valley of the 
Mississippi. It is from an eye witness, and every 
man can read ajid judge for himself. 

“ I will say to you, that all which can now be 
done by all Christendom, would not save the val¬ 
ley from having a majority of Catholics in ten 


vor. Their schools in the Valley are numerous 
even now, and educate our richest and most in¬ 
fluential citizens’ children of the Protestant class. 
These schools are filled to overflowing. Among 
non-professing Protestants, the Catholics are po¬ 
pular, and thousands consider them the only bul¬ 
wark against a union of church and state, which 
they think the eastern Christians are laboring to 
bring about. 

“ Our country is in perilous times. The West 
will soon be ruled by Catholics, and in spite of the 
efforts that can be made. Would that New Eng¬ 
land had waked to her duty some years ago, and 
disseminated her sterling principles, and planted 
her institutions in this Valley. It is now too late 
to succeed, though every effort ought to be made. 
Formerly, when a Catholic came to the United 
States, he found no church nor priest, and soon 
became a Protestant, and his children knew noth¬ 
ing of that faith. Now, every Catholie finds a 
place where his children can be brought up in 
that order. Every Catholic that now comes to 
our shores, serves to increase the danger. The 


You can have no idea of the floods of number of priests and churches is already very 


great, in the Valley, and fast increasing. The 
worst is, they are becoming more and more popu¬ 
lar with Protestants, every day. They will soon 
be able to carry any point by their votes. Can¬ 
didates for office court the Catholics, and men in 
power, in places where they are plenty, direct all 
their aims to please them. They zll vote alike, 
and can thus exert an influence much greater 
than Protestants with equal numbers.” 





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